Black Friday To Boost Sluggish Holiday Sales

With the holiday shopping season off to a slow start, retailers can look forward to Black Friday sales exceeding last year's totals, according to a Consumer Reports Holiday Poll released this week.

Twenty-four percent of 1,009 consumers polled plan to brave the lines on Black Friday -- traditionally the busiest shopping day of the year -- up from 20 percent in 2006. According to the poll, only 38 percent of consumers have begun their holiday shopping, down from 43 percent at this time last year.

"Shoppers have been off to a slow start so far this year," said Tod Marks, a senior editor at Consumer Reports. "But retailers can rest assured that shoppers will be waiting when the doors open on Friday."